Overview

Distribution

Range Description

Recorded from Belize; Colombia; Costa Rica; Ecuador (Cordillera del Condor); Guatemala; Honduras; El Salvador; Mexico (Oaxaca, Veracruz); Nicaragua; Panama; and Venezuela (Cordillera Oriental, Selvas de Guatopo). Some records from Venezuela may be referable to Podocarpus trinitensis while records from Chiapas are Podocarpus matudae. Podocarpus guatemalensis' extent of occurrence is well in excess of 20,000 km2. The area of occupancy is difficult to calculate as throughout its range it only occurs sporadically in relatively small fragmented subpopulations.

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Ecology

Habitat

Belizean Pine Forests Habitat

This species is found in the Belizean pine forests along the Central America's northwestern Caribbean Sea coast; the ecoregion exhibits relatively well preserved fragments of vegetation as well as a considerable abundance of fauna. This ecoregion comprises a geographically small portion of the total land area of the ecoregions of Belize. There is relatively low endemism in the Belizean pine forests, and only a moderate species richness here; for example, only 447 vertebrate taxa have been recorded in the ecoregion. The ecoregion represents one of the few examples of lowland and premontane pine forests in the Neotropics, where the dominant tree species is Honduran Pine (Pinus caribaea var. hondurensis), which requires periodic low intensity burns for its regeneration. The vegetation is adapted to the xeric, acidic and nutrient-poor conditions that occur primarily in the dry season.

In the forest of the Maya Mountains, vegetation reaches higher altitudes, the topography is more rugged and crossed by various rivers, and nighttime temperatures are lower. The pine trees are larger and numerous, and the pine forest intersects other formations of interest such as rainforest, Cohune Palm (corozal), cactus associations, and others. About eleven percent of Belize is covered by natural pine vegetation. Only two percent represents totally closed forests; three percent semi-closed forests; and the remaining six percent pine savannas, that occupy coastal areas and contain isolated pine trees or stands of pine trees separated by extensive pastures. In addition to human activity, edaphic factors are a determining matter in this distribution, since the forests on the northern plain and southern coastal zone are on sandy soils or sandy-clay soils and usually have less drainage than the more fertile soils in the center of the country.

At elevations of 650 to 700 metres, the forests transition to premontane in terms of vegetation. At these higher levels, representative tree species are Egg-cone Pine (Pinus oocarpa), which crosses with Honduras Pine (P. hondurensis), where distributions overlap, although belonging to subsections of different genera; British Honduras Yellowwood (Podocarpus guatemalensis) and Quercus spp.; moreover, and in even more moist areas there is a predominance of Jelecote Pine (Pinus patula), together with the palm Euterpe precatoria var. longivaginata and the arboreal fernsCyathea myosuroides and Hemitelia multiflora.

A number of reptilian species are found in the Belizean pine forests, including: Guatemala Neckband Snake (Scaphiodontophis annulatus); Indigo Snake (Drymarchon corais); On the coasts, interior lakes and rivers of Belize and by extension in this ecoregion there are two species of threatened crocodiles: American Crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) and Morelet's Crocodile (C. moreletii), while observation of the Central American River Turtle (Dermatemys mawii CR) is not uncommon in this ecoregion.

Also to be noted is the use of this habitat by the Mexican Black Howler (Alouatta pigra), which can be considered the most endangered howler monkey of the genus, and the Central American spider monkey (Atteles geoffroyi). Both species experienced a decline due to the epidemic yellow fever that swept the country in the 1950s. The five feline species that exist in Belize: Jaguar (Panthera onca), Puma (F. concolor), Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), Margay (Leopardus wiedii) and Jaguarundí (Herpailurus yagouaroundi) are in appendix I of CITES, as well as the Central American tapir (Tapirus bairdii) can been seen with relative frequency. Belize has the highest density of felines in Central America. The tapir is abundant around rivers. The White-lipped Peccary (Tayassu pecari) is also present in the ecoregion.

Although most of the amphibians and reptiles are found in humid premontane and lowland forests, the only endemic frog in this ecoregion, Maya Mountains Frog (Lithobates juliani), is restricted to the Mountain Pine Ridge in the Maya Mountains. Salamanders in the ecoregion are represented by the Alta Verapaz Salamander (Bolitoglossa dofleini NT), whose males are arboreal, while females live under logs. Anuran taxa found in the ecoregion include: Rio Grande Frog (Lithobates berlandieri); Sabinal Frog (Leptodactylus melanonotus); Northern Sheep Frog (Hypopachus variolosus); Stauffer's Long-nosed Treefrog (Scinax staufferi); and Tungara Treefrog (Engystomops pustulosus).

Present in the ecoregion are a number of avian species, including the endangered Yellow-headed Amazon Parrot (Amazona oratrix EN), although this bird is adversely affected by ongoing habitat destruction. Of particular interest is the presence in this ecoregion of Central America's highest procreative colony of Jabiru (Jabiru mycteria), a large migratory bird, particularly in the Crooked Tree sanctuary, on the country's northern plains.

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Habitat and Ecology

Podocarpus guatemalensis occurs in mixed conifer-angiosperm forest or pine forest, often along streams. The altitudinal range calculated from data with herbarium specimens is 1-1,400 m a.s.l., but it is most common below 1,000 m a.s.l. Records of this species from higher altitudes are usually referable to Podocarpus matudae or Podocarpus oleifolius. It is therefore a species both from lowland and lower montane forests. In the lowlands it is often present in savanna type vegetation with Pinus oocarpa, P. caribaea, and many angiosperm shrubs and usually near stream sides. In evergreen broad-leaved tropical rainforests it is a canopy tree, apparently successfully competing with other trees. Little is known of the soil types in which this tree occurs in the latter vegetation type; often conifers are restricted to nutrient-poor substrates where they do better with the aid of mycorrhiza.

IUCN Red List Assessment

This one of the most widespread species of Podocarpus, with a sporadic distribution from Ecuador in the south to as far north as Veracruz and Oaxaca in Mexico. It is occasionally reported as fairly common at localities. It has been collected consistently over the past few decades and is known to occur within several protected areas. It has also been reported to be locally threatened by logging and to suffer a reduction of the extent of its habitat from agricultural expansion. In Costa Rica this species has been assessed as Critically Endangered based on criterion C: <250 mature individuals and ongoing decline (Estrada Chavarra et al. 2005). It is also listed as Critically Endangered (criteria not stated) on Panama's most recent Red List (Autoridad Nacional del Ambiente 2008). In Guatemala it has been nationally assessed as Vulnerable as a result of a past decline of at least 30% while in Colombia it has been listed as Near Threatened (Crdenas Lpez and Salinas 2007) for similar reasons. In other range states it either has not been nationally assessed or is not listed as threatened.Despite decline within parts of its range, the global assessment is still Least Concern, mainly due to its wide distribution. However, the next assessment could find that this species qualifies for listing in a more threatened category.

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Trends

Population

This one of the most widespread species of Podocarpus. It is occasionally reported as fairly common at localities. In other places it is almost certainly declining due to deforestation. No overall trend can easily be established for such a widespread species.

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Threats

It has been reported to be locally threatened by logging and there has been a decline in its area of occupancy due to agricultural expansion. In some parts of its range, subpopulations are small and restricted in their distribution. They are therefore more susceptible to changes in land-use. Additionally, it is mainly found at lower altitudes where forest conversion and deforestation has been more extensive.